1 Exposure to Airborne Only - No Reaction

Cindy-

We have know of my daughters allergy for about 3 1/2 years now. She had never had an airborne reaction until this last fall. She had two minor reactions both in stores. One was in a produce market and they had a display of mixed nuts.She complained of a funny itch in her throat. The next was in a shop that sells soaps, bubble bath & lotions. It is very fragrant in there. She complained of instant itching and had a rash on her leg.

Cindy,
I think this is a good question. My son, 4, has never experienced a reaction from smell but he has been exposed to it alot. I used to eat them all the time in front of him and we would eat peanut butter sandwiches also. We were at activities and reunions where people munched on nuts but believe me when I say that his sensitivity is becoming worse. He absolutely hates the smell of nuts now. They strongly bother him and he gets vividly upset and starts to scream. I am not sure if he ever felt anything in his mouth/throat and am not sure if he would tell me yet. I am curious to see what other people write.

Cindy-I am confused. Is the airborne peanut exposure the FIRST exposure whatsoever to peanuts (including touch and taste) or is it the FIRST AIRBORNE exposure and he has already been exposed by touch or taste. Are you trying to ascertain whether he has a peanut allergy and are counting the airborne as the "first" exposure...or do you know for a fact that he has a peanut allergy...Thanks for the clarification.

Kathyrn65, thank-you for your ?. I'm sorry I wasn't more clear. My son is DEFINITELY PA, he has had 3 reactions, 2 of which were anaphylactic. His 3rd reaction (2nd anaphylactic one) was by merely touching a product with PB in it to his lips - it did not enter his mouth (no moisture on it, no bite mark on it), it simply touched his mouth. He has not come into contact with peanut product as far as touching them so I don't know what the reaction would be if he touched say, for example, a peanut in it's shell. When we went to the circus, they were flogging peanuts which was something I stupidly never even thought of. I kept him on my lap so he did not come into any touch contact with them. However, everyone was eating them, shells were all over the floor, etc. and that's where my ? comes in. This was his 1st exposure to only smell and he had no reaction whatsoever (his father & I did instead - major internal freak-out). So, now I was just wondering if that meant he would always not react to airborne (although I plan to do the circus thing differently next time) or if there is the possibility that he may still react to the smell of them. Does that make sense? He does not come into contact with peanut products at home and is in a "peanut free" classroom at school so I don't really have anything to judge and/or test this by. I've just noticed that other people have posted before on different threads and then again in this one that the PA includes airborne. What do you think? Best wishes.

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I have been researching airborne reactions in the medical literature and what I have found has been reassuring. Apparently, although some peanut allergic persons react to aerosolized (airborne) particles anaphylactic reactions are rare. My son definitely reacts to the smell of peanut butter or recently shelled nuts but the reaction is mild and not analphylactic. We avoid exposures anyways but I took him to a baseball game recently and felt comfortable doing that because I did not believe we were exposing him to a potential anaphylactic reaction should he happen to be around peanuts.

Before we knew my son was PA (and even after we knew but were not as hyper-educated as we are now) he used to sit next to his older bro while bro ate PB sandwiches. However, he had an airborne reaction on a plane, and since then seems much more sensitive to smell and touch. (A plane is an extreme example due to the air circulation problem.) From what I understand, pb smell is rarely an issue because the protein itself it no aerosolized, but peanuts themselves can be risky.

My allergist told me today that he thought my daughter (who has reacted to touch) would be safe to stay in a room with peanut butter (we were discussing a classroom experiment in the upcoming 1st grade book). He said pb smell should not be a problem, especially if smell had not been a problem before. I do know my school nurse told me she had a 1st grader react due to the 2nd grade class next door doing an experiment.

My allergist told me today that he thought my daughter (who has reacted to touch) would be safe to stay in a room with peanut butter (we were discussing a classroom experiment in the upcoming 1st grade book). He said pb smell should not be a problem, especially if smell had not been a problem before. I do know my school nurse told me she had a 1st grader react due to the 2nd grade class next door doing an experiment.

So, right now, should I consider Jesse okay as far as airborne until something happens to prove otherwise? The doctor had said not to give the school benadryl to go with the epipens but maybe I should in case he has a minor reaction to smell. What do you think?

I think that each time a PA person is exposed to the smell there is the *potential* for a reaction. Just like there is no way to predict the severity of each reaction, I don't think there's any way to know when or if there will be an airborne reaction.

For me personally, in elementary school the smell didn't generally bother me, but by junior high it did, and now I can't walk into a candy store without a reaction starting. None of my airborne reactions have been very serious and usually go away quickly as soon as I get away from the peanuts.

Rebekah